Feeding attachment for knitting machines



Aug. 28, 1928 1,682,050

W. NEBEL FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed May 27, 1926 v 2 Sheets-Sheet l JnumHo c Aug. 28, 1 928. 1,682,050 -w'. 'NEBEL FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed May 27, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 zgg abboznaq Patented Aug. 28, 1928.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM N EBEL, 01? CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA.

FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES.

Application filed May 27,

My said invention relates to yarn feeding mechanism for full fashioned knitting machines and it is an object thereof to provide feeding means particularly adapted for use in the manufacture of stockings having e xtended tapered insteps, such as are shown in my pending application, No. 98,330, filed March 29, 1926. Such stockings are desirable for use with low-cut shoes, as explained in said application.

Referring to the drawings, which are made a part hereof, and in which similar reference characters indicate similar parts:

Figure 1 is a plan of one end of the feeding mechanism having my improvements embodied therein, looking in the direction of the arrow in Figure 3.

Figure 2 a detail of parts shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 an end view of parts showman Figure 1, looking toward the right in Flgure 1. Figure 4 an elevation of parts shown in Figure 8, and

Figure 5 a plan of a portion of a stocking blank for a full fashioned stocking, as made on my improved machine.

In the drawings, reference character 10 1ndicates generally a group of carrier rods for 30 the yarn guides of a full fashioned knitting machine, which rods are given their reciproeating motion by friction devices moved to and fro in a manner well known to those skilled in the art. The reciprocating move ment of these rods is limited for the purpose of varying the number of needles to which the different yarns are fed, by means which will now be described.

A worm shaft 11 extends parallel to the carrier rods, this worm shaft being driven by conventional means including a pawl acting on a ratchet-12, a handle 13 also provided as a-oonvenient means for turningthe worm shaft to set a pair of threaded blocks or nuts 14 and 15 which are moved simultaneously in one direction or the other by the-rotation of the worm shaft.

One of the nuts namely block 15 carries a pivot 16 on which a numberof arms 17 are swingably supported these arms being providded with suitable means for moving them into and out of operative relation with the ends of the respective carrier rods, such means being here shown in the form of handles 18. Each of the arms is provided at its inner end with a set screw 19 forming an ad- 1926. Serial No. 112,140.

justable abutment for the corresponding rods. One of the arms as shown in Figure 1 has a set screw 20 which is much longer than the remaining set screws, the set screw 20 controlling the instep yarn carrier rod which has a relatively short traverse on foot portion 49. The instep carrier rod has its other stop, same as part 20 in Figure 1, at the other end of the machine. These long set screws are used only in a foot where the yarn of the instep carrier rod B makes only the instep portion of the foot and the sole yarn carriers provide the yarn for the soles to form wh at is known as a split foot. On a foot made with a plated or reinforced sole the long set screw 20 is removed and a short set screw 19 is put in its place so that the carrier rod B will travel from one extreme edge of the foot to the other, in other words the material for knitting the sole portion of the foot is delivered by the carrier B as well as carriers C and E.

A rod 21 is slidably supported at one side of the group of carrier rods by means of a pair of brackets 22 and 23 secured to the frame of the machine rigidly in any suitable manner, these brackets providing bearings for the rod 21. The block 15 has an extension secured to the rod 21 by suitable means such as set screws 24, so that the rod moves with the threaded blocks. A pair of arms 25 and 26 are also fastened to the rod 21 by suitable means such as set screws. The arm 26 carries at its extreme end a threaded rod 27 which serves as a brace for the arm 25. The extension of nut 14 is formed as a yoke between the arms of which a bent lever 28 is pivotally supported on the rod 21. One arm of the bent lever 28 is provided with a stop 29, which is forced down by cam 44 and thereby stops the middle one of the carrier rods (left sole yarn) in the present embodiment of the invention, in which the carrier rods are shown as five in number. The arm 25 also carries a stop 30 coacting with an abutment 31 on the same carrier rod for limiting its movement to the right, one of the stops 19 limiting its movement to the left.

The individual rods are marked A, B, C, D, E, in the drawings.

The rod marked A is not in use during the making of the foot of the stocking. The rod marked B carries the yarn guide providing the yarn for the instep indicated at 32 in Figure 5. The rods marked C and E carry the yarn guides providing the yarns for the left and right portions of the sole, respectively, marked 33 and 34 in Figure 5, and the rod marked D carries the yarn guide providing the yarn for the balance of'the toe 3%, after the carriers B, C, and Eare put out of operation which occurs when the instep parts 32 and i9 are finished. I

The lever 28 is moved to bring the stop 29 into and out of operative relation with the rod C by means comprising a rock arm 33 having pin and slot connection with the lever by means of a rod 35 connecting the two levers 28 of the machine, it being understood that the mechanism shown in Figure 1 is duplicated at the other end of the machine, the parts there being complementary to those shown in Figure-1.

The rock arm 33 is mounted on a rock shaft 35 and another rock arm 36 is secured to said shaft. A link 3'7 is adj ustably secured to the rock arm 36 by means of a pin 37 adapted to engage any one of a plurality of holes 38. At its other end the link is connected to a lever 39 by a pin 4.0 engaging an elongated slot 11 in the link. A spring 42 normally holds the pin at one end of the slot. The lever 39 carries a roller l3 bearing against a cam 14: on a revolving shaft 45. The lever is pivoted on a bracket 46 and a spring 17 biases it in a direction to maintain the roller 4-3 inengagen'ient with the cam 414.

In the formation of the foot of the stocking, the carrier rods C and E are operative to provide a heavy yarn for knitting the left and right sole portions 33, 34 while the carrier rod B provides the yarn for the instep portion 32 and 49. The traverse of carrier B is gradually shortened to narrow the instep portion 32 in the manner illustrated in Figure 5. The length of traverse of the carrier rods C and E does not change in making the foot but the position of the entire traverse is changed for the reason that the stops which determine-the distance traveled by these carrier rods are gradually moved inward, step by step. In the present embodiment of the invention the left carrier rod marked C moves from the stop arm 17 carrying screw 19 to the hook-shaped stop 30 and back again. The stop 30 is screwed into arm 25 and held rigid by a nut and the arm is fastened with screws to shaft 21 which travels with the nut or block 15 carrying the arms 17. It will be seen therefore that stop 30 moves in timed relation with screw 19 and that the traverse of rod C is always of the same length. down to the toe. Similarly the carrier rod E is limited in one direction by a stop arm at the other end of the machine and a hook like stop 30 constructed and operating exactly like the apparatus for the left carrier rod C.

The mechanism illustrated in Figure 3 is necessary for the purpose of moving the sole thread carrier rods C and E during the narrowing movement of the machine. If the ma chine were not provided with such an attachment the carrier rods referred to would remain stationary during inward movements of the blocks 1 1 and 15' and a gap would be formed between stop 31 and hook 30 equal to the width of two needles, or the distance moved ateach step of the narrowing apparatus. The width of this gap would, of course, vary with the gage of the machine, being 1/13th of an inch for a 39 gage machine or l/lth of an inch for a 42 gage machine. It will he understood that this attachment can be applied to machines of any gage.

During the'operation of the narrowing apparatus just before the worm shaft starts to turn for moving the blocks 14: and 15 inward (the corresponding blocks at the other end of the machine also moving inward at the same time), the high part of the'cam 44.- reaches the roller 43 and moves the lever 39 about its pivot 46, thereby. throu h the train of connections as shown in Figure 3 causing the hook or stop 29 to drop behind the other end of the rod 0. It will be obvious that the inward movement of the narrowing apparatus must now carry the rod with it. 7

The above described operation continues to the line 48. After this line is reached the narrowing proceeds, the width of the plated reinforced or ordinary sole portions continuing the same, but the instep portion 49 tapering, so that its side lines remain parallel to the outside line of the foot portion being knitted. The diamond points 50 are formed in the usual manner and the toe is finished off as usual by the yarn of carrier rod D after portion 419 is completed.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the details of my device and therefore I do not limit myself to what is shown in the drawings and described in the specification.

Having fully described my said invention, what I claim as novel and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: v

1. Yarn feeding mechanism for a full fashioned knitting machine comprising reciprocating carrier rods, a block provided with stops for limiting movement of said carrier rods in one direction, a stop moving in timed relation with said block for limiting the movement of a carrier rod in the opposite direction, and a hook normally out of operative relation with said carrier rod adapted to move the rod inward at each step of the narrowing operation approximately the same distance as said opposing stop and simultaneously therewith.

2. A device as in claim 1 including a cam operating in timed relation with the narrowing block to move said hook into and out of operative relation to the carrier rod controlled thereby.

' 3. Yarn feeding mechanism for a full fashioned knitting machine comprising a reciproeating carrier rod for an instep yarn, reciprocating rods for sole portions, a block carrying short set screws for stopping the rods controlling the sole yarns, means for moving said block inward step by step during the narrowing operation, a long set screw moving with said block, said long set screw serving to stop the traverse of the rod controlling the instep yarn in a direction towards said block, a hook adapted to engage the end of a sole carrier rod for moving it during the steps of the narrowing operation and substantially the same distance as said block, said hook being normally out of operative relation of said sole carrier rod, and means for controlling said hook.

4C. Yarn feeding mechanism for a full fashioned knitting machine comprising reciproeating carrier rods, a block provided with stops for limiting movement of said carrier rods in one direction, a stop moving in timed relation with said block for limiting the movement of a carrier rod in the opposite direction, and means normally out of operative relation of said carrier rod for moving the rod inwardly and simultaneously with the stop and substantially the same distance at each step in the narrowing operation.

5. Yarn feeding mechanism for fashioning knitting machines including a reciprocatory guide, means for variably limiting the stroke of the guide in one direction, to vary the number of needles to which yarn is supplied, means moving in timed relation with said first named means for limiting the stroke of the guide in the opposite direction, and means normally out of operative relation with said guide acting to move the guide at each step in the narrowing operation substantially the same distance as said oppositely acting means and simultaneously therewith, substantially as set forth.

6. Yarn feeding mechanism for fashioning knitting machines including a reciprocatory guide, means for variably limiting the stroke of the guide in one direction, to vary the number of needles to which yarn is supplied, means moving in timed relation with said first named means for limiting the stroke of the guide in the opposite direction, and

means normally out of operative relation with said guide acting to move the guide at each step in the narrowing operation, said means fixed relatively to said first and second named means for variably limiting the stroke by simultaneous movement with the oppositely acting means, substantially as set forth.

7. Yarn feeding mechanism for a full fashioned knitting machine as described in claim 1, including means for forming a tapering instep of relatively light weight with a triangular forward end portion.

8. In a knitting machine, a main yarn carrier rod for the instep yarn, splicing yarn carriers for constant width sole splicing, a first set of stops for limiting the movement of the carrier rods in one direction, a second stop means spaced from but moving with said first set of stops for limiting the movement of the splicing carrier rod in the opposite direction, said first and second stops both movable simultaneously inward step-by-step for narrowing, means independent of said first and second stops normally out of operative relation to said splicing carrier rod for moving it inwardly simultaneously with said first and second stops in the same direction and for the same distance at each step in the narrowing operation, the inward movement of the first stops serving to limit the movement of. the instep yarn carrier whereby the first and second stops for the splicing yarn carrier may be shifted at the end of each course.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Charlotte, North Carolina, May, A. D. nineteen hundred and twenty-six.

WILLIAM NEBEL. 

